Many people spend the substantial part of their workday sitting in a task chair at a desk or table. Therefore, properly designed task chairs and posture are important for the comfort and health of many people. To this end, many different task chairs have been devised.
Many designs are directed towards adjustability, weight distribution and style but few designs ensure that the user is sitting properly in the chair. One such design is the so-called kneeling chair, where the seat is at a forward angle such that the knees are lower than the hips and the thighs are at an angle of about 60 to 70 degrees from vertical, and some weight is borne by the knees. Another such design is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,086,157 to Toso, entitled “Ergonomic Chair” and hereby incorporated by reference. This design incorporates a horizontal seat, a back brace and a knee brace, which are adjustable with respect to each other. This design ensures proper posture because the knee brace prevents slouching or other incorrect posture. Another solution to this problem may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,773,106 to Toso et al., entitled “Back Support” and hereby incorporated by reference, which is directed to a back support strap that permits the wearer to sit in an upright position for extended periods of time by tensioning the strap against the knees to support the wearer's back.
There is thus an ongoing need to develop ergonomic task chairs that provide comfort and proper positioning.